For as long as he can remember, U.K.-based ice sculptor James Tottle has been an artist: He's dabbled in drawing, clay sculpture, and even mural-painting over the years. So when he stumbled across a company looking for ice sculptors, it seemed like a natural fit for him to give it a shot — and his career (and creativity) has only taken off from there.
Today Tottle is a full-blown ice artist, creating both commissioned pieces for companies that request specific designs and his own original projects for live ice carving competitions. To create his frozen art, Tottle starts with a solid block of ice (which he says typically weighs about 240 pounds) and a chainsaw. First he carves out the basic shape of his design, and then he goes back in to create different textures and add finer details: a process that he estimates to take two to three hours from start to finish.
Ultimately, you have to see Tottle's artistry in action to understand his genius — check out the video above and just try to not be mesmerized as his ice sculptures come to life.
